Why Cloud Native Developers at the Linux Foundation Choose Equinix
Describe any cloud native computing stack running today, and there's a very good chance that software supported by the Linux Foundation powers at least part of it – if not all. As the nonprofit consortium behind key open source projects like Kubernetes and the Linux kernel, the Linux Foundation plays a pivotal role in making cloud native computing possible.
But who makes it possible for the Linux Foundation to run those projects? The answer, in part, is Equinix. Linux Foundation projects leverage Equinix infrastructure in multiple ways to help bring their open source code to users across the world.
But don't just take our word for it. Keep reading for a look at how Linux Foundation leaders say their projects leverage dedicated cloud at Equinix to support some of their most important functions – and why the control provided by Equinix solutions enables outcomes that just wouldn't be possible on other platforms.
It's one thing to host source code for a conventional application. It's quite another to host source code for the Linux kernel, the most consequential and ubiquitous open source project in the world. This is what kernel.org, a Linux Foundation project, does with help from Equinix Metal dedicated cloud.
Given the massive size of the Linux kernel (which weighs in at around 28 million lines of code), the fact that there are many versions of the kernel and the rapid clip at which Linux developers push out updated code, distributing the kernel to developers across the world requires infrastructure that is vastly scalable. Equinix provides that infrastructure to the kernel project at no cost.
Specifically, kernel.org relies on dedicated cloud distributed across four Equinix data centers in strategic locations around the globe to host custom Git environments and ensure that users can download the kernel sources quickly, no matter where they are based.
Kernel.org needs a system that can route requests based on where users are geographically, and Git doesn't currently benefit from using a traditional CDN," explains Konstantin Ryabitsev, Director of Core Projects at the Linux Foundation. He adds that the ability to host kernel.org's massive body of source code on bare metal helps to deliver optimal performance, while also addressing concerns about memory or CPU leaks in virtualized environments. "If Equinix weren't there, our team would have to rack and stack their own servers" to achieve the same level of security and performance, he says
On top of this, Reeves points out, hosting Linux source code on infrastructure inside Equinix data centers offers a benefit to businesses that also use Equinix to host their own workloads. Those organizations can pull Linux code without moving traffic outside of Equinix's network – a capability that not only enables lightning-fast data transfer, but also avoids the egress fees that would apply in other setups.
Bare-metal testing environments
For Linux Foundation projects that build code designed to run on bare metal, the ability to test on bare metal is critical. Here, too, Equinix offers help that benefits projects.
For example, take Cilium, an observability tool for Kubernetes that uses the extended Berkeley Packet Filter (eBPF) to collect monitoring data directly from the Linux kernel in a hyper-efficient way. Cilium developers focus on "things that happen really deep down in the kernel layer," says Jeffrey Sica, Head of Projects at the Cloud Native Computing Foundation, the home of Kubernetes and the large cloud native computing ecosystem.
To ensure that their code can interact with low-level kernel resources, Cilium developers need to be able to test on bare metal – which they do using servers in a dedicated cloud donated by Equinix Metal.
"Cilium devs want a dedicated piece of hardware to run their software on, and just have a kernel above it – no hypervisor or containers," Sica says. "Equinix offers an architecture that allows us to test without being constrained by virtualized environments."
Total network control
The ability to manage network traffic in highly granular ways is also critical for projects like Cilium. Here, too, the ability to tightly control networking on Equinix’s dedicated cloud enables full control over BGP sessions.
With that capability, developers can control packet routing in ways that mimic real-world conditions, allowing them to perform tests that accurately simulate how their software performs in actual production environments.
"Equinix platform gives BGP complete control which accelerates our community’s ability to perform accurate tests and simulations," Sica says.
Quiet neighbors
"Noisy neighbors" – a term that refers to the risk that one workload within a shared hosting environment will consume excessive resources, depriving its neighbors of adequate CPU, memory, or storage – are a persistent problem in cloud native environments. And while there are various strategies for mitigating it, such as setting resource quotas and limits, the only rock-solid guarantee against noisy neighbors is to run workloads on bare-metal servers in a dedicated cloud instead of using a shared environment.
That's another reason why Linux Foundation projects benefit from Equinix. For example, as Reeves puts it in reference to kernel.org's use of bare-metal servers, "Kernel developers know how the sausage is made, and they don't like shared hosting." They rely on Equinix because "they want data separation and quiet neighbors"
Conclusion
Linux Foundation projects leverage other platforms in various ways, too. But when it comes to obtaining infrastructure to support vital testing and distribution needs, many open source projects rely on Equinix – and not just because of Equinix's Open Source Partner Program, which gives developers access to enterprise-grade infrastructure at no cost.
The main reason is that a dedicated cloud composed of bare-metal servers, massively scalable data centers distributed across the globe, and control over networks give Linux Foundation developers the control to do things that just wouldn't be possible elsewhere.
As Reeves says, "Linux Foundation teams know a thing or two about cloud computing and cloud native. They choose dedicated cloud at Equinix because they know it's the best solution for some of their most challenging tasks."